Metapolis

Overview

Located in Hwasung, South Korea this mixed-use development totals 280,000 square meters (three million square feet) and consists of one commercial and four residential high rises, a hotel, and a plaza with retail and community facilities. The tallest of the four residential towers, at 66 stories, is the country’s fourth tallest structure. Thornton Tomasetti is providing structural engineering design through extended design development for Phase I for the 66-story residential high rise. The tower features four levels of underground parking, and the foundation is a three-meter mat foundation supported on piles.

A significant engineering challenge was meeting both safety and serviceability requirements—controlling overall building drift and wind-induced accelerations at higher floors—to conform to Korean building codes. The engineering team developed a lateral load-resisting system consisting of a reinforced concrete core and a perimeter belt wall, providing overall building stiffness efficiently and economically. Half of the perimeter opens and the other half is solid half beam and column. The project required international coordination with three engineers and the architect.